The relationship between clinical outcomes and the patient experience — the sum of all of interactions of an individual related to managing his or her health — has long been established and documented.
Yet many elements that are typically described as having an impact on overall experience are related to quality of care and the patient-physician relationship, things largely outside the control of pharmaceutical companies. So how do pharma programs, which can include patient support services, direct-to-consumer advertising, and collaborations with patient advocacy groups, among other things, contribute to the patient experience?
The answer: Most pharma companies don’t know. Recent research that we and colleagues undertook for our company, ZS, indicates that only about 10% of pharma companies actually measure the patient experience. Most companies rely on activity and impact metrics as proxies for patient experience.
